Telangana: Student Killed, 12 Injured as Lighting Truss Collapses at College Dandiya Night

A student was killed and at least 12 others were injured on Saturday evening when a massive lighting truss collapsed during a Dandiya celebration at an engineering college in Nadargul, Rangareddy district, Telangana. The collapse came amid strong winds.

The incident took place at MVSR College, under the Adibatla police station limits. The deceased, identified by the college director as Sony Narayana Das, was a student of the Electrical and Electronics Engineering (EEE) branch.

A senior police official said one girl had died and twelve others were injured after a lifting stand collapsed during the event, and that the injured were shifted to hospital. A large police force was deployed on the campus as tensions rose among grieving students and parents.

HOW IT HAPPENED

According to eyewitnesses, the collapse came in the concluding hours of “Sangamam,” the college’s two-day annual technical-cum-cultural festival. Hundreds of students were dancing on the ground when a heavy metal truss holding decorative stage lights gave way and fell on a group of female students.

College director Prasanna Kumar called it an unforeseen natural mishap. He said the Dandiya programme had been arranged at students’ request, and that about ten minutes before it was due to end, a strong gale struck and one of the stands holding the lights could not withstand it and fell where the girls were dancing.

He said about nine students were admitted to hospital, that the college used its own vehicles because waiting for a 108 ambulance would have taken time, and that those taken for CT scans at Pratyusha Hospital have been declared out of danger. The management, he said, is monitoring the situation round the clock and will support the bereaved family.

‘WE WANT ANSWERS’

Suresh, an uncle of the deceased, alleged safety lapses. He said he got a call between 7 pm and 8 pm that a lighting and decoration pole had fallen on his friend Ashok’s daughter.

Ashok first thought the injury was minor, and when Suresh reached the hospital he was told she had been brought dead. “There was clear negligence and basic safety precautions were not taken,” he said. “We want answers.”

POLITICAL OUTRAGE

The tragedy has drawn sharp political reaction. BJP leader Andela Sriramulu Yadav visited the spot and accused the college management of criminal negligence. He claimed that unstable poles about 80 feet high had been put up without adequate support and fell on roughly 20 girls, four of whom he said are in critical condition.

He demanded immediate arrests and warned of a “massive agitation” if none were made, saying he would announce the next course of action on Sunday morning.

Police have begun an investigation to find out whether the college management and the event contractors obtained the required permissions and safety certifications before the event.

With inputs from ANI